The Only Thing That Lasts: a novel Paperback – March 1, 2009

The dedication of Tyler Tichelaar's newest novel, "The Only Thing That Lasts," is to his brother "who likes an old-fashioned book." Turning the page of that dedication, the reader finds the excerpt from Gone With the Wind that titles this book, and enters a leisurely nostalgic experience that combines regional pride, factual background and wholesome values.This is a regional work meant to portray the character of the author's hometown of Marquette, Michigan. In this it succeeds, weaving what is otherwise a standard tale of family fortunes around a burnished portrait of this colorful town perched on the shores of Lake Superior. Throughout the story, names and places familiar to residents are used to place the work squarely within the confines of its geography.The story unfolds as an autobiography of Robert O'Neill, a fictional character introduced as a famous American novelist of the 20th century. The opening chapter of the book is a fast-moving montage of Robert as a young boy and his momentous move from the Deep South of South Carolina to Marquette shortly after his mother's death. It is an engaging vision of a child peering through the veil of narrow attitudes--the very first sentence contains the epithet of "damn Yankees" by a tobacco-spitting curmudgeon--into the consciousness of new people and places. The "Yankee" label stirs a fiery retort from our young hero, and in these first swirling pages Robert reveals himself to be a thinking, conscientious realist with a convincing background of a novelist-to-be.These passionate beginnings are tamped once the protagonist reaches Marquette, however, and the story simmers down into a straightforward and straight-laced account of hometown life in this Great Lakes community. The everyday adventures and follies that loom so large in our childhoods take the stage: Robert's hope at finding a friend his age, his fears of mockery over the pink awfulness of his new room, his adolescent loves and intrigues; here is a careful Tom Sawyer preoccupied with his own pig-tailed Becky Thatcher, recounting time-gilded adventures of his beloved hometown.It all wraps up as nicely as the nostalgic tone implies, delivering a softly moral tale just as the author indicated. There is an overly-narrated quality to the story in places, but it is punctuated by the author's humorous and quirky insights that offer bright contrast to the stolid scenes. Mr. Tichelaar has a unique voice he lays just under the text, dropping in detail and reflection that belie the sleepy, homespun yet heartfelt rhythms of the pages. At such times, the author surfaces in a way that brings authenticity to the work, actually showing through deft strokes an underlying talent that gives substance to the idea of this work as a writer's autobiography.The book is what it purports to be, a nostalgic "old-fashioned" piece of Americana and all that implies. There are surprises, but not many, for surprise is not the purpose of such a portrait. "The Only Thing That Matters" is a well-meant work that seldom startles or alarms, but says what it means and leaves the reader with a pleasant impression of the town and its fictional--and its actual--gifted author.

"A true library inside a home! To possess a library was the only reason I could think of for why anyone would want to be rich."Okay . . . I'm hooked! How could I not fall in love with a boy (or anyone) who loves books that much? Just getting to page 85 to see the excitement on Robert's face as he sees all those beautifully embossed books lining the shelves in that massive library and knowing that as a solid defining moment in his life is worth the five stars to me. Life was so different around a hundred years ago, and without television, telephones, computers, gadgets--I imagine to a young boy who wanted to find adventure and the mysteries of life, books would seem to hold the magic keys to the world.Some people have compared this story to Twain's scallywags Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn. I don't see that here. This reminds me more of a story like Little Women with all the homespun charm of the Little House books, except from a boy's point of view. For this, I'd like to thank Tyler Tichelaar's brother for requesting an "old fashioned story." (Dedication page) And, I'm a sucker for this type of tale. It is so refreshing to not have all the people being murdered, being put into jail, doing drugs, or plotting revenge tactics. This is just an easy story about a young boy's fictional life in historic Marquette, Michigan. Robert has more than his share of hardships and emotional adjustments for a young teen during the war, (and, as a young man) yet, he always seems to find the bright spot in things even if it is only for a short period of time as is evidenced in this passage, "And so, whenever life has felt close to falling apart, I think back on that day and think of the blue and the green, the two colors that made my soul leap up in me, that made me feel like I had a deeper, inner life I was only beginning to understand." (P. 139)Sprinkled throughout the book were historical facts about Marquette and Mackinac Island. It was so much fun to look up these places on the Internet. I have to agree with the author that the Grand Hotel is the most impressive hotel I've ever seen. It looks like an amazing place as does the island itself. All this history added so much enjoyment to the story and made it really come to life.The Only Thing That Lasts was such an enjoyable read that I'm certain I'll be enjoying other works by Tyler R. Tichelaar.I'd like to thank the author for this lovely copy of his book and also Review the Book.com for this opportunity to review this book.